Avenge Me
by alternativerocks
Summary: What if Loki was never evil, just mistrusted for what he was? The Avengers and Loki fight together with a common enemy. This is a parallel to the movie and it will differ as greatly as I can make it with different monsters and plotlines. K is for blood and gore, not too much but enough. I do not own the characters of course. Tell me what you think, things to improve or incorporate!
1. Chapter 1

Little could be heard over the whistle of wind and rain in the trees that day, and the sky was a dark brooding beast holding back its worst until it could be fully appreciated for its potential. Windows and doors were tightly latched for fear of the chill of the storm and its might. Some of the things humans feared seemed strange to any Asgardian with any sanity at all; pain and death were looked at kindly in the realm of the gods, as long as they were acquired with heroism and sacrifice while humans had a passion for dreading it.

The cold was hardly of any bother to Loki, who, being half Ice Giant had little to worry about in that respect. The empty streets offered no shelter and no immediate hiding place, which disturbed the God of Lies greatly. The town, being small, had almost no litter or graffiti mucking up the residences and the houses were neat and small. If he hadn't had an errand to attend to, Loki would have enjoyed the simplicity.

Swiftly approaching the end of the tidy street he was strutting along, Loki finally found his desired destination. The second to last house at the very northern-most part of town. He could almost taste his victory, and all he had to do was this one little job to gain the trust of S.H.I.E.L.D. Or a part of it at the very least.

The Trickster turned up the cracking driveway and onto the pathway leading to the door. He stood in front of it, positive that the owner had already seen him and was awaiting his first move. Loki knocked politely. He had to remain polite.

Loki stepped back a respectable distance and waited patiently for someone to come out. A tired looking man opened the door about a foot, not an inch more. Suspicion lit his eyes and he cautiously peeked around his guest, looking for more people.

"There are no more people, I can assure you Dr. Banner. Not even a mic," Loki said. Dr. Banner opened his door all the way.

"That's a relief. For a second there, I thought the God of Mischief was doing his job," he replied sarcastically. The doctor rubbed his face with his hands wearily. "To what do I owe the pleasure? Oh, and before I sound too enthusiastic, how did you find me and what do you want?"

Loki grinned at the man's courage; not many had the guts to directly insult a god.

"I am simply doing a job, sir, and I wish to do it correctly. A piece of that would include discussing those very same matters away from prying eyes and ears, if we could please," Loki hinted. Dr. Banner gave him a long, searching glare. At last he nodded and stepped aside.

"Come in, please," he said. Loki gave the man a tight smile and stepped in, stopping and waiting for his host at the edge of the threshold. Dr. Banner closed and locked the door, then walked into a cozy living room and motioned for Loki to sit. They sat and the silence was awkward and tense.

"Well, to answer your first question, Dr. Banner, the Avengers need you back simple as that. We haven't lost you so it wasn't too hard to find you. S.H.I.E.L.D. has uncovered a new threat, and we find that it would be beneficial if we could have your services on our side. The enemy is...persuasive, to say the least," Loki began.

Dr. Banner held up a hand to shush the younger man.

"I understand what they've sent you for, Loki, but I can't be sure whom exactly sent you. I could agree to go only to see that I go with the very one I promised to fight."

Loki nodded with understanding.

"I know, I know. Perhaps a certain document from S.H.I.E.L.D would persuade you that I mean only to recruit for them?" Loki replied, holding up the paper so Dr. Banner could see. Bruce squinted and leaned forward, staring at the bold red heading. ' Mr. Bruce Banner; We Request Your Services' and indeed the document had been printed form S.H.I.E.L.D; the insignia was correct and when held up to the light, the whole paper appeared a greenish color.

Dr. Banner pushed his eyebrows up in surprise that his visitor actually told the truth.

"Well you have me, what are you going to do with me now?" Bruce asked with a sigh. Loki raised an eyebrow and appraised the man for a few seconds.

"We're going to S.H.I.E.L.D of course."


	2. Chapter 2

The dark, twisting halls of the S.H.I.E.L.D carrier echoed with the patter of rapid footsteps as Loki and Bruce walked to the labs. Loki was showing Bruce to the lab, full of machinery that he would enjoy and others would think of as annoying, beeping lumps of metal. The Avengers were meeting down there to greet Mr. Banner into their team.

"So you work for S.H.I.E.L.D now, then? How did that come about?" Bruce asked hesitantly. Loki swallowed and kept his gaze forward as he replied.

"Thor had already joined the force by the time they discovered the threat. I had, by chance, transported myself right into the middle of a fight pitting the Avengers against the enemy's army. So, naturally I decided to help them out a bit," Loki replied.

Bruce looked his escort up and down. His eyes opened widely as if he were going crazy.

"With magic, Mr Banner, with magic," Loki explained with a smile. "Apparently they needed all hands on deck and found my services desirable to command in the oncoming war."

The pair walked farther quietly, Bruce noticing uncomfortably that his footsteps were quite loud compared to Loki's.

"How did we even get here? I assume magic but I couldn't tell, everything just went dark," Bruce asked confusedly. Loki grinned apologetically.

"It was magic; it's always strange the first time you transport," He replied. Bruce looked down, wondering what it was like for Loki in_ his_ first time and how frightened he would have been to randomly appear in some other place.

They reached the lab in awkward silence. Loki slapped his hand on the biometric lock and the door slid open without protest. They strutted into the labs and Bruce gasped at the machines.

"Oh my god, it's been so long since I've seen a particle accelerator! It's in beautiful condition, look at that finish!" Bruce exclaimed. He turned excitedly to Loki who looked back as if to say 'are we done here?'

"I'm glad to see you are enjoying your new toys, Mr Banner," came the deep, resounding voice of Nick Fury from deeper in the lab. The pair picked their way to the very back where the Avengers were gathered around a pulsating _creature, _lying on a surgical table.

The thing was pinkish and shriveled, shaking in a curled up ball with bulging veins running along its length. It made slight, whimpering sounds and appeared to be asleep if it was at all a thing capable of sleep. Its flesh was moist and its breathing snuffled wetly; it sounded as if it was having a hard time.

"This, gentlemen would be what we think is a baby monster of some variety. From some realm. We're having trouble identifying it because it's a bit...resistant to any DNA tests and scans we've done. Could either of you say you knew what this was? Loki, I know you've explored the quieter parts of the realms, any idea?" Nick explained.

Loki reached out a hand and touched the creature's hot body, rolling it gently for a better view. When the face was revealed, the soft breath of a woman's voice gasped. Natasha Romanoff, the Black Widow, put her hand to her mouth.

The face was scrunched up and red, its eyes huge and rolling in the bugged out sockets. It's mouth was a just a mouth, its nose just a nose. For all the world, the creature could have been a mutated human baby.

Loki grimaced as he let the creature roll back in on itself.

"This is a Kree infant, I'm afraid. How did you get it? Her parents are probably searching for her and that's not a good thing for whomever is in her possession," he sighed, looking over at Nick.

"It came to us when the threat was revealed in that Russian bunker, laying in the rubble. It wasn't hurt at all, we think, but we didn't know how it was supposed to look. Let's cover the basics first, what's a Kree?" Nick replied. The baby reached out with a humanoid arm and groped in the air. Loki offered his thin hand and the Kree clamped down.

"The Kree is an alien race, Mr. Fury. The first had blue skin, but then evolution kicked in and turned a few pink, so that they better resembled humans. The pink are considered impure and the blue are revered as royalty despite the fact that they are a minority. They breath mostly nitrogen, that would be this one's problem, and their planet has higher gravity. When they come to Earth, although they can't breath without aid, they are faster and stronger." Loki glanced up to the team.

Thor nodded like he was finally recognizing the creature and the rest of the team had the appearance of either wanting to run out of the place screaming or throw up all over their shoes. An ugly, dark look clouded Hawkeye's face as he thought about what having an alien aboard the S.H.I.E.L.D craft meant.

"So now we're going to be under attack from aliens, is that what I'm hearing? We are already treading rough water, why don't we just throw in a shark, too!" he yelled furiously.

Nick tried to pacify him as the whole team began talking all at once. Just as the arguing turned to a screaming match, the baby started squalling. Nick and Clint stared each other down but remained quiet; the rest of the Avengers actually looked sorry.

Loki gently picked up the infant and cradled him against him chest.

"Don't upset her, it'll only make the situation worse! She needs her nitrogen, where is the medical wing?" Loki reprimanded over the Kree's cries.

Nick called for a lab assistant, finally breaking Hawkeye's gaze, and ordered an oxygen room to be converted into a nitrogen room. The assistant raised an eyebrow and took the Kree with him as he went about his assignment.

Bruce breathed a sigh through his nose and glanced up from the departing assistant.

"So. Lets hear about this Russian bunker."

"Nice place," Bruce commented coolly as he stared around the S.H.I.E.L.D craft's meeting room. Indeed it was nice; the steel walls were a blue-gray color, the carpets a stormy gray, and the chairs cushy, navy contraptions on wheels. The whole picture had a detached, emotionless feel to it and the air had a chill that seemed like it would remain despite heavy use.

Nick nodded acceptance at the compliment as he rapped him knuckles on the cherry wood table and rolled about in his chair. The room was new, a recent installment and there were many mixed feelings about it, although the general consensus was that it was overly fancy. The Avengers had removed themselves, much to Bruce's dismay, from the crowded and busy labs.

Nick cleared his throat as he prepared to retell the story of the Russian bunker. Steve, Bruce,and Loki sat up to the table, resting their elbows on the frigid wood, Steve's shield at his feet. Clint and Thor both leaned back into the squishy chair support and folded their arms. Tony swallowed the last of his whiskey and slammed the thick glass on the table as it burned down his throat.

"Right. The bunker. Okay. It's an odd story, I'll warn you of that now before you get confused, and we're still not sure of all the facts. But here goes.

"We started picking up electrical frequencies about three months ago, odd ones, the kinds you get from aliens. Like the Kree. They weren't immediately suspected of any activity in the following investigation, but now we think they are coming out of their dormancy. The frequencies got stronger and harsher, almost like a robotic voice screaming at us, until they suddenly stopped two months back.

"In the middle of the Everglades, soon after, came a giant hole in the center of a large area of mostly solid ground. It resembled a sinkhole, but the sounds that came from it were ancient and windy; at least that's what our spies say. Black mist seems to be floating around in there and the smell of it is hot and sulfurous.

"More holes started appearing in densely wooded areas. _Only _in densely wooded areas. Things, crab or spider-like things started to crawl out, and soon the larger ones, the full grown Skrulls started to emerge. The creatures are their pets or something along those lines. They are killing machines. The shell is hard and instead of claws, the beasts have knife-like appendages. They hiss like mangy cats. Bad tempers," Nick told them. He glanced at Tony as a sarcastic mutter that sounded like 'like some people,' was heard. Natasha elbowed him sharply in the ribs and nothing more was heard.

"The Skrulls started to gather in bunches around their hives. As soon as they figured to have enough recruits, they moved to attack the nearest civilizations. Luckily their holes were far out of the way and they only managed to take a few human homes. That's still too many people dead, though, and I won't stand for it.

"The Russian forests are very heavily wooded, as you well know, Miss Romanoff, and bunkers also dot the lands, frequently in those very forests. The Skrulls wormed their way into the building and blew it sky high. All that was left that we have found so far is rubble and the child. That's all we know."

The group sat in contemplative silence as they digested the situation. Finally, Steve spoke.

"What's a Skrull?" he wondered aloud.

"Better known of the alien races. Reptilian in natural appearance, but the modern generation can shape shift. The modern Skrulls have two classes; the larger group of regular Skrulls, and the anomaly of the Dire Wraiths. The Dire Wraiths are more deadly, they can shape shift and have magic, too," Loki quietly explained as he stared off at the table's surface.

"So what you're saying is they are exactly like you?" Tony said rather harshly. Loki ducked his head as a sickened look passed over his eyes. He swallowed heavily and nodded.

"Yes, Mr. Stark, exactly like me."


	3. Chapter 3

The Avengers sat in an unusual silence; it wasn't often that their conflicting personalities didn't grate. The only sound was the muffled footsteps and voices from the organization's many offices, and the slight squeaks of the chairs as they were shifted in.

Tony and Loki silently grit their teeth at each other stubbornly. They were the outcasts, the only ones alike to each other. And they couldn't stand it. Tony's knuckles were clenched and white from the effort; Loki's face had gone pale and drawn in both self-disgust and anger.

Thankfully, the monotone was broken by a S.H.I.E.L.D. messenger dashing boldly into the room, holding and spilling papers onto the cool floor, looking distressed.

"Sir! We are receiving intel from The Threat; they want to talk to our leader, what do I say?" the man practically yelled. Disbelief flashed briefly across Nick's face as he stood.

"I'll be there, just calm, soldier!" Nick replied. "Be sure to get the recorders on and operating, I want every piece of technology available watching this! Stay put, men, I want you prepared to fly out of here to intercept wherever this signal is coming from."

The Avengers all stood, however, and adrenaline was already pumping. If Mr. Nick Fury, director of a top secret organization and known to have an 'I do what I want when I want' attitude, was taking time out of a meeting to contact a threat, it had to be an imminent threat.

The silence, this time, was tense and energetic. Weapons were already in hand and muscles prepared for action. Tony jerked his gaze to Loki and nodded tersely.

"Sorry, I was a bit...upset at the moment," he apologized in a tight voice. Loki stared at him for a long moment, reading his sincerity.

"Understandable. I forgive you, Man of Iron," he replied in a faraway voice as the sound of an amplified computer echoed all the way down to the meeting room. Tony rolled his eyes and muttered something along the lines of 'or Man of Iron, either way.'

"_-and he will attack. It's only a matter of time now, his interest in your files is piqued. He wants to know about every villain, every criminal, every piece of information that you have compiled over the course of your time fighting against them. He will get what he wants._

_"He has an army, huge, not even your organization can compare to an entire race of these creatures. They are building up as we speak, thousands, perhaps even millions at this point. That little battle you fought against a few of them weeks ago, to give you an idea, was only an eager 5% of the population at the time. They are coming, they are building, and they have magic." _

The vibrating tones of the computer rumbled in a deep, authoritative voice. The inexplicable sound of heartlessness sent shivers down the stilled forms of soldiers listening to their very fate. Natasha and Clint clasped hands without even noticing; Thor and Loki looked at each other simultaneously. The rest stared at the floor.

Then, hardly a moment after the transmission ended, the helecarrier started to list, sending chairs and tables sliding, books and documents falling, and people stumbling. The Avengers immediately knew what this had been; a diversion.

They raced out the door and up the stairs as the craft started to lose altitude, hoping there was still enough time to stall the plummet. Thor stood at the top of the stairs and pulled his teammates up after him, yelling for them to get Nick and go. Loki came last and rushed the other way, toward the stairs leading to the very roof of the carrier. Thor caught his collar before he got very far and dragged him back.

"What are you doing, fool?! They went this way!" Thor shouted over the sound of machines popping and crashing and people screaming. Loki snarled and tugged himself our of his brother's iron grip.

"They have to be attacking from somewhere and the roof is the easiest break-in point!" he replied as he dashed up the stairs. Thor paused for a moment, considering his options, and ran up after Loki. Wind tunneled down from the open air above, so strong that it almost knocked an unsuspecting Thor down again, as the hatch was opened.

Thor finally stumbled out onto the helecarrier's top, ignoring his hair blowing in his eyes and searching out his baby brother. A blast of energy behind him snapped, and an odd, growling yelp followed by a sickening crunch alerted him to the presence of other creatures on deck. Whirling toward the noise, Thor watched as a blackened, snakelike alien slid off the craft with a hoarse scream.

Thor glanced quickly around, noting the presence of dozens of other aliens and his brother. Lifting Mjolnir, he took out a beast leaping his way with one fell swoop. The smarter, more cautious ones slunk around the gods warily, forcing them to go on the offensive.

Loki sent another blast of green magic rippling into a line of the aliens, presumably killing them all. A creature hissed in rage as his comrades died, and charged along with several others at the Trickster. Thor jabbed at one who decided he had nothing to live for and swung a powerful strike at two others, ending up killing more than he had expected. He looked to his brother again and saw his standing over the bodies of more, a sad look on his face.

"These would be the Skrull we were discussing earlier, Thor. Watch the claws, they may be poisoned," Loki shouted over the sounds of clanking armor and the wind. Thor nodded without hardly paying attention. Regardless of what they were, they would pay for attacking the helecarrier.

Thor lifted his hammer and a boom of thunder cracked the ears of the Skrull; Loki had expected the attack and covered his own ears just in time. Lightening streaked down to meet Mjolnir and the electricity traveled down and through the helecarrier's roof, not going through the rubber lining inside the walls. Most of the beasts were cooked where they stood, those lucky enough to have jumped at just the right moment, or to have on rubber shoes were left.

Another hatch in the roof opened and Natasha, Clint, Bruce, Steve, and Tony climbed through, out of breath. Bruce quickly snapped the neck of the closest Skrull and pushed another off the edge of the roof, an almost unfair move he hadn't been known to make before. Thor and Loki relaxed; there were only a few of the Skrull left and they were concentrated closely to the other Avengers.

Natasha shot the remaining Skrull right through the eyes and the team strutted confidently over to the gods, footsteps clanking on metal.

Suddenly, several things happened at once. The helecarrier's right engine exploded, starting it on fire and sending the craft into a steep decline. Bruce walked right up to Loki and slashed open a cut on his chest with a nearly invisible knife, Natasha shot her pistol at Thor, barely striking his armor and one at Loki right through the stomach. The very last thing, it seemed, was another hatch opening, releasing the very same Avengers who seemed to have turned.

Steve, now in his outfit, paused at the entrance, staring at the spectacle. He charged up the rest of the stairs, bellowing at the frauds and throwing his shield. The false Clint fell off the edge, a huge gash opened up on his forehead from the weapon. Natasha, cool as she always was in sticky situations, shot the remaining clones. They hissed in rage and pain as they plummeted down, over 40,000 feet to the solid ground below.

Thor hardly even noticed, however, and he could care less at the sight of his prideful baby brother standing with a dull, shocked look on his face and his bony hands spread on the growing crimson patch staining his clothes. Loki looked up just as the craft dove into free fall, his eyes set on his brother. He stumbled once from dizziness and the wind and he, too, fell from the helecarrier roof.

Thor didn't even need to think as he leapt after Loki, Mjolnir in hand and a determined look on his face. Gravity carried him faster than it would his brother, he was quite a bit heavier even without his hammer, and he had to rely on that.

Thor reached out with his hand as he swiftly approached his brother's flailing limbs and flapping cloak. His scream was so shrill that it came out of his throat as little more than a whistle. Thor searched for his brother's hand, but instead grasped the fabric of Loki's shirt, cutting his shout abruptly as the cloth jerked into his throat.

Thor hoisted his scrawny brother up higher and tucked him under his arm snugly as their descent slowed. Blood trickled wetly onto his hand and Thor felt Loki give a quiver and hook his hands into his savior's armor. His eyes were huge and glazed over in pain and his breaths were in short gasps. The ground came up closer and Thor braced his feet for the impact, raising Mjolnir as he flew.

As soon as Thor's feet hit the earth, he slid Loki down to the ground gently, holding his hand all the way. His eyes were staring at the sky and Thor realized that the helecarrier was still falling, a black cloud of smoke and fire darkening the sky, and the explosions of the failing engines thudded deeply in his ears. Thor looked down at his brother, a question in his eyes.

"Go on, Thor, save your friends. I'll be okay," Loki mumbled softly, a sad smile brightening his paling face. Thor set down his hand and brushed back the black hair obscuring part of his forehead and nodded.

"I will return," Thor announced, straightening up and grasping Mjolnir tightly. "I will not forgive myself if anything happens to you, but I will go."

Thor soared up into the ash, squinting through his burning eyes. The sight of Tony in his suit carrying Natasha and Bruce calmed him slightly, but Clint and Steve remained on the burning husk. Approaching the hovercraft's top, Thor spotted the two jump, wanting to take their lives into their own hands instead of waiting for the inevitable. He caught them by the arms and lowered the pair down.

"No more playing with matches for me," Steve uttered in a shell-shocked voice as his feet touched ground. Clint glanced back up to the helecarrier, and sighed.

"So many were left on there. Thousands. If only we could have waited for more to get on the roof, then we might have had a chance," he said, his voice hoarse and hollow. He peered back at Thor, a curious look skewing his features. "Didn't your brother fall, too?"

Thor's eyes widened and his blood ran cold; how had he forgotten Loki?! He ran back in the general direction he thought he had left him laying, but there was no sign of him amongst the tufts of thick undergrowth. A rustle behind him alerted him to a presence and Thor turned to it quickly, dashing through the grasses.

The forest's trees seemed to part with a wheeze of air and a throaty growl howled deep and long out of sight. The breeze created from it was cold and damp, a slight, earthy smell emanating from the source.

"Loki!" Thor called foolishly, knowing full well that if the creature making that noise could, it would get to Loki first.

"Thor!" Tony's voice answered from far off, and Thor turned to it, hoping to see the man carrying his brother in his arms. He was disappointed, however, and walked to Tony, not noticing his frantic beckoning. "This way, Thor, this way."

The pair ran then, and Thor saw the Avengers newly rejoined in a circle around the body of his brother, staring down, not sure what to do with the injured god. Thor crouched by his head protectively, grasping the cold hand offered to him in a searching manner. The Avengers let them have their greeting in peace, standing silently all around.

Natasha was the first to look up. The others followed her gaze and her pointing finger to the S.H.I.E.L.D helecarrier finally crashing to the ground several miles away, sending up explosions and flames in all directions.

"I do believe we've just gone from hunter to hunted."

* * *

**Yeah, I'm sorry about the wait, and for destroying S.H.I.E.L.D., and for avoiding the vast majority of the whump. Trust me, I love the whump, and I will crank it up from here on out. Comments please!**


	4. Chapter 4

Twisted bits of shrapnel and burning bodies littered the pockmarked ground, the stench of burnt hair and flesh clung thickly in the smog. As far as Tony could tell, no one had survived the crash, nothing had survived, and only the tens of thousands of workers that would be missing forever would suggest that something out of the ordinary had happened.

His suit was the only thing between chocking in the smoke and breathing filtered air. Tony had been the only one deemed able to search for survivors; the other Avengers wouldn't be able to breath long in this place.

A rattling cough off to Tony's right side startled him briefly, and he rushed to the movement. The metal and dead bodies shifted, and Tony started to throw off the coverage to assist the victim. A dark hand thrust its way from the debris and scrabbled at its encasing tomb.

Nick Fury pushed his way from the destruction and coughed again, a loud, racking cough that sounded wet.

"Fury! God, at least you've lived, I was wondering if anyone had made it-"

"Not for long, Stark. Not for too much longer," Nick interrupted impatiently as the dust fell from his chest; at least, the debris that would fall. A huge splinter of metal had forced its way into the space between his ribcage deeply. A trail of blood already traced its way down from the corner of his mouth.

Tony, for perhaps the first and last time in his life, was speechless. His suit's hand reached out briefly as if he could save the dying man. Nick just pushed it away, smiling fondly as he savored everything he had once hated about his employee.

"One thing, St-stark. Keep the team in line; no I'm not p-putting you in charge, you egocentric freak, make sure they are alright. Natasha and Clint look good together; t-tell them that. Loki holds my complete trust and he and Th-Thor had better stick to each other like glue. For you, I wish only that you learn in time to appreciate other people," Nick stammered arrogantly. He leaned in close, so close Tony could smell the blood on his breath.

"The last mission you'll ever get from me; you better avenge me, dammit."

Tony watched as a shudder ran through his boss's body and stilled. He ran his suit's scanners over Nick to see if he was yet alive, but everything was slowing. Tony crouched and stared at the man who had once been so rigid, so stern, and saw how different he was with his muscles relaxed.

He sighed and stood after about 30 minutes, and bent to close Nick's eyes. Tony glanced up and slumped his shoulders. Much more of this and he would spend the rest of his life fulfilling last wishes.

"Hold still, I don't want my fingers to slip," Bruce grunted heavily, as he strained to pull the bullet out of Loki's abdomen. Loki squirmed in agony under the care, and his fists kept jerking near the wound when a wave of pain hit. The bullet was almost melted into the flesh, and each tug earned a sharp yelp from him. "Thor, could you shut him up, he's really distracting?"

Thor scowled at the insult to his brother, but stepped forward to hold Loki's hands tightly. The bullet was finally separating from the bloody skin, making a slick, ripping sound. The veins in Loki's arms stood out as he clenched his fist, his face paling even further. Finally, his eyes widened and he flopped onto the ground, exhausted, as the bullet jerked out of his stomach, lying bloody in the grass where it had fallen. Bruce pressed his hand to the fresh wound as the blood started pumping.

"Bandages! Hurry, he's already lost too much!" Bruce called to Natasha, who seemed to be able to hide any matter of things on her person. She traced her hands down her body and selected a pocket, pulling out the desired bandages and tossing them to Bruce. He unraveled them with shaking hands and then balled half of it to stop the blood flow, the other half for later use.

The fabric was soon stained crimson, along with the ground around Loki, who was fading out fast. He yawned and gave a whine of pain, then closed his bright eyes. Bruce shook his head and patted his patient's face gently to wake him.

"Nuh-uh, I need you awake for this part, stay here," Bruce said to a scowling Loki, who shifted uncomfortably. The blood flow was slowing now, and he would have to judge how tight to tie the bandages without cutting off circulation. Bruce began to untangle the knot he had made with fumbling fingers, dropping the cloth quite a few times.

"Y'all right over there, Bruce?" Steve called, attracting attention to the display of clumsiness.

"Umm...You guys know I'm not _this_ kind of doctor, right?I have a very small understanding of what I'm doing right now. I could very well be making this much worse," Bruce replied.

Loki sat up abruptly, staring at the man who had acted as his doctor just seconds before, and snatched the bandages from him, pressing them to his stomach himself. "Apparently no one among us is fit to heal, so I shall just do so myself," he explained in a hoarse voice. Thor seemed to agree with this line of thought, and he helped his brother tie the bandages.

"Perhaps we should take a brief visit to the halls of Asgard, Loki?" he asked tentatively. Loki seemed to panic, and shook his head vigorously at the notion.

"I never want to go there again, ever! Don't even discuss that place," he snapped, while at the same time drawing away from Thor. The Avengers watched this suspicious exchange like a game of tennis for a few moments before interrupting.

"Alright, ladies, don't get your panties in a twist. What's going on with you two? Loki, you're more quiet than Thor had originally described you as, and you have this big hatred of your own home. Thor, I don't know about you buddy, but you seemed to get quieter, too. And more show-offier. That's kind of weird, and I think we all deserve an explanation," Clint mediated between the bickering brothers.

Loki glared at Thor for a few seconds, pure poison in his gaze, and he nodded his head at Clint.

"Go ahead, Thor, tell them! You never seemed to have a problem with telling anyone who would listen before, and those people were strangers," he said with an acidic smile. Thor winced and scooted away from his own brother.

"I told you before, I'm sorry! I was stupid and young and ignorant and I didn't know what it meant to you and-"

"He sewed my mouth shut because I had cut off a woman's hair and then regrew it almost immediately."Loki interrupted in a deadpan voice.

The team drew back slightly from Thor, looking at him with doubt for the truth behind Loki's words. He nodded in a sorrowful way, eyes cast down, not meeting the bewildered stares of his comrades.

"Not me, personally who did the sewing, but I did watch. And I didn't stop it, either. I...didn't know...his side of things...I didn't know what they did behind the scenes, behind my back," Thor explained brokenly.

Loki's features softened slightly at the remorse painted on Thor's face, and he put a hand on his brother's broad back. Thor glanced up, expecting some harsh remark, but receiving none, cautiously put his own arm around the slight shoulders of the wounded god.

"You shouldn't be moving so much, Loki. You'll only hurt yourself more," Thor scolded lightly. Loki frowned and leaned into his brother's bulk, shaking.

"I know full well my limits, do not tell me what I should and shouldn't-"Loki started, cutting himself off as his bandage twisted and his face paled. Thor looked at him concernedly, then to the sky, as if searching for something.

"It's fine, don't you dare even try! We're needed here and here we'll stay," Loki insisted, settling down again. Thor didn't look exactly pleased by this decision, but didn't dare object.

Natasha stifled a yawn and sat to the right of Thor, soon followed by Clint. Steve stayed standing, searching the encroaching smoke smog for the reappearing figure of Tony. The man had been gone for hours and the sun was setting to the west, the sky a fiery red. Much longer and the remaining Avengers would have to abandon him to find a campsite, seeing as the S.H.I.E.L.D helecarrier wouldn't be home any more. Clint offered his coat to Natasha and the two shared their heat, though even that wasn't enough.

The team sat in contemplative silence for a few moments, shivering in the chilling air. Steve looked at the brothers huddled together and raised his eyebrows expectantly.

"You've yet to tell us your whole story," he said in an impatient tone. Thor glanced up and swallowed.

"It's a bit long..."

"We have time," Natasha replied rapidly. The whole group was staring at the two now, watching their reactions. Thor nodded, accepting the request.

"We are, the two of us, Odinson. Me by blood, Loki by adoption, but to me, he is my brother. He is half Jotun by birth, half Ice Giant. Laufey was Loki's biological father, the leader of all the Ice Giants. When the war between Asgards and Jotuns started, he was a newborn and Laufey had him hidden away, embarrassed of his small size. Directly after the war, Loki was found in the snow by Odin, who rescued him, thinking politically at the time. Return the king's son, get the king's peace. Laufey didn't care, however, and Odin chose to keep my brother and accept him as part of the family, which was a controversial topic among the Asgards. They shut up after we grew old enough to understand what they were saying and what it meant.

"The years passed uninterrupted as we grew up. I was 4 years older than him, of course, but even then he was considered small for his age. We trained with weapons and war tactics, rarely did we study in books." Thor said. Loki, who had been drifting into unconsciousness, jumped awake at the end, a scowl darkening his face.

"Perhaps he wouldn't be so rash in his decisions if we had been forced to study more. I enjoyed it, but even our tutor seemed bored. The library was buried under dust by the time I discovered it." Loki added in a dark tone. Thor snorted in laughter and tried to hide it with a coughing fit.

"Sorry, sorry, but really, could you see me staring at runes for hours like that?" he asked his glaring brother. "The books in our library are written in English, Thor. They've been in English for thousands of years." Loki replied, raising his eyebrows.

Thor, subdued by his new knowledge, opted to go back to his tale in place of arguing his point further.

"They Warriors Three, they became my best friends beside my family, but they thought that Loki's lack of...enthusiasm for war craft was a major downfall in his personality. Their opinion of him infected the whole of Asgard it seemed, although I failed to notice any difference. None of our family thought anything wrong with the situation either, until Loki learned of his magic.

"Odin was proud, Frigg was frightened, and I couldn't grasp what was happening when it occurred. Loki had managed to put a magical barrier around his whole room; no one could enter, he couldn't leave. After an hour or so it faded, and we wondered where the magic had been hidden and why it had come so suddenly and faded so soon.

"Loki knew not where his abilities had been hidden for so long, but he did know why they had come. The past few years he had been verbally bullied, ignored, neglected, and for the first time that day, physically abused. He was slapped across the face by Fandral, one of the Warriors, when he had dropped his sword while sparring. Hard. His lip was cut and there was a red hand print on his face for the remainder of the day. Loki had wanted the barrier to come subconsciously so he could be safe and hide the evidence."

The present Avengers looked at each other in remorse. Steve looked at the god in question, dozing with his face pressed into the cool metal of Thor's armor, and wondered at all that he had seen in his years. Thor had paused, quieting himself for a moment to look at his brother. He sighed lightly, and looked up.

"I think that should be all for now, I don't wish to wake him." Thor whispered to his friends. Clint held his gaze coolly and lowered his chin.

"He will be all right, correct?" he asked, nodding a head at the Trickster. Thor glanced down and gnawed at is lip.

"He is far more hurt than he'd like to admit, I can tell by the way he allowed himself to fall asleep with you all around. We didn't have guns in Asgard, the foreign materials might cause infection if we don't watch carefully. I'd like to take him home to heal but he wouldn't allow it, too many poisonous memories." Thor explained in a hushed tone as he kept a close eye on his deathly pale brother.

"Hey guys." A voice called. Thor froze, Natasha and Clint whipped toward it pulling weapons, and Steve grabbed up his shield. They relaxed after the welcome sight of Tony's suit shone through the undergrowth. He removed the helmet and stretched, looking down at his team."Did I miss much?"


End file.
